The Ashes of Hate
by Lost Shining Ghosts
Summary: He was ready to leave the room before Near monotonously stated, "It's only a week Mello. Just be thankful it wasn't you." Rated M for later chapters.
1. The News

A soft breeze blew through the room from the open window. Mello lied on the comforter of his room, glaring at the ceiling. _This can't be happening._

Roger had only given him the news this morning and he resisted the rage boiling inside of him. That undeniable malice that he himself didn't understand sometimes; all that mattered was it was there. A rustle sounded from the floor.

"Mello, could you pass me cube on that shelf near you?" that annoyingly neutral voice asked. Mello sighed with frustration and snatched the cube off the shelf, dropping it on the ground instead of lashing out and whipping it at the white haired boy he now shared a room with.

The blonde clenched his fists thinking about his current situation.

_"Mello, could you come down to my office?" Roger asked as he poked his head into said blonde's room. Mello sat at his desk, books and papers spread out and revealing little of the desk's surface._

_"I'm a little busy right now," he insisted after swallowing a bite of chocolate. "Is it urgent?"_

_"Yes, it is. I'll explain everything in the office." Mello sighed in defeat, leaving his chocolate on the sill of the window as he pulled himself up and followed Roger down the halls of the Wammy House. Mello noticed an odd smell; it was the weekend so he hadn't left his room since dinner last night._

_Sniffing the air, he asked, "Is something burning?"_

_Roger didn't answer when they approached the office doors, opening them. The first thing Mello noticed was Near, sitting on the floor as usual with his puzzle in front of him. Glaring at Near as he stood beside him while Roger passed to sit behind the desk._

_"What's this about?" Mello asked in suspicion. Why was he standing in front of a desk with his rival like it was some kind of judgment? Unless…_

_Did L choose one of them as successor? Wait, no, it was too early for that. But what could it be?_

_"Mello, there was a fire last night," Roger stated outright. Huh?_

_"The fire only hit the west wings so none of the east wings were affected. We suspect the wiring sparked and the wood caught aflame. Anyways, no one was hurt, seeing as it wasn't very serious but Nears room got the worst of it," Roger explained. Mello just stared at him, his eyebrows creasing to decipher Roger's expression._

_"Because of all the cardboard games and toys Near had, the fire grew the worst in his room. We're surprised he made it out, actually." Mello resisted a smirk at the thought of Near passing away and him being made number one. That would've made their battle much simpler._

_"Anyways, his room was completely destroyed, along with most of his toys and wardrobe. And…" Roger took a deep breath, looking like he was about to regret what he was going to say. "Your room is the only one free at the moment."_

_Mello's eyes widened at the realization at what Roger just said._

_"No! I refuse to share my room him! I'll room with anyone except him," the blonde stated venomously._

_"Unfortunately, you're the only single room left. The wing will be prepared in a week so it's only temporary," Roger spoke with the indignation that this arrangement couldn't be changed. Mello thought quickly._

_"You know that Near and I don't get along! What if Near roomed with K and I could room with Matt?" Mello suggested. Roger shook his head though._

_"Mello, it'll only be a week. Those kinds of accommodations would be made if it would take months for repair but it's illogical to go to that effort for just a week." Mello knew then, by the straight thin line of Roger's lips, that these terms were unchangeable. He knew when he couldn't win._

_"If I may add my own thoughts, Mello, I assure you that I won't cause any trouble during this week. Just continue as you would without me there," Near promised without raising his head to look away from the puzzle._

_For the first time that morning, Mello actually took a chance to really look at Near, biting the inside of his cheek. Near hid his face but Mello could see some raw burn marks on the hand that took pieces of the puzzle from the pile and place them down. The normally white shirt and matching pants also showed some scorch marks, and Mello noted one on his arm that had burned right through, leaving a black rimmed hole to reveal milky white flesh._

_Even the puzzle itself, usually completely white with the black N in the corner, showed damage through burn marks on pieces, but it was obviously well protected due to the minimal damage._

_Mello sighed, almost taking pity on the boy. But, it was still a sigh of defeat._

_"Fine, if it isn't going to be long. I expect him to be out of my hair next week Sunday," the blonde growled, venom dripping into his voice. He was ready to leave the room before Near monotonously stated, "It's only a week Mello. Just be thankful it wasn't you."_

_Only a week… Only a week…_ It's what Mello kept telling himself. Stupid Near, having so many board games. They were just asking to catch fire eventually.

_"Also, a mattress will arrive for Near tomorrow," Roger informed. Mello froze though. Tomorrow…_

_"Well, I guess he'll have to enjoy sleeping on the floor tonight," Mello stated with restrained anger before leaving the room, not letting the matter to be discussed. With the current state of things, he wouldn't lose whatever freedoms he had left. That included a bed to himself. _

Mello was on his back, his eyes on the clock, on his bed. It was 7:58 at the moment. The House called a lights out at 9:00. He had just about an hour to kill until he had to deal with the bed possession matter. He rose from the mattress.

"I'm going to the grounds," he stated coldly to Near. Near had replaced his burnt cloths, almost making it seem like the event never happened, save for a couple visible burns on his hands. "Don't touch my stuff." With that and a quick pause to grab his chocolate, he was gone.

Near listened to Mello close the door and his steps as they faded down the halls; when he couldn't hear anything except the crickets outside, chirping, id he let his fear out.

Near let his emotions release, the fear that he had felt when he was surrounded by flames, the pain of the burns caused by the merciless orange flames, and even the sadness of the loss of his many puzzles and games he spent the greater deal of his time with. All of these released in a series of relentless sobs and flowing tears.

His logical mind kept telling him that these tears were completely unnecessary. That the time had passed and he was still alive. Yet, the simple release of tears felt like a weight was being lifted from him. All those emotions that had been boxed up inside of him, covered over by his neutral misdemeanor, set free.

After what seemed like hours but, as Near checked, had only been ten minutes, his tears ceased and he suddenly felt exhausted. He glanced at the bed for just a moment before shaking his head.

"There's an 87% chance that Mello would kick me out of his bed when he returns. An even higher chance that he'd resort to physical violence," Near murmured. Taking a chance, he looked under the bed. Like he thought, an extra pillow had carelessly fallen between the wall and headboard of the bed.

Near retrieved the pillow, fluffing it to remove the dust, before resting it over his scorched puzzle; he unbuttoned his shirt and decided to use it as a makeshift blanket. Near usually slept shirtless, wearing only the pants. He hissed though when a raw burn made contact with the cold floor. It was because of these habits too that made the worst of the burns invisible under the shirt.

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, Near reminded himself it was only for one night without the mattress and only one week to spend in this room.

Pulling his shirt to cover himself, he fell asleep as quickly as possible in his current state.

Mello returned to the room not long after Near fell asleep. The blonde was surprised at the sight of the white haired boy sleeping on the floor with just a pillow but didn't exactly care.

He crawled into his own bed, too stressed to sleep. After five minutes of tossing and turning, he looked over the edge of the bed, distracting himself by watching Near sleep.

He looked at the sleeping face of the boy, thought lines and creases smoothed out to give his face the look of youthful innocence. Mello rolled his eyes. _Innocent, as if._

_Near sleeps on his back_, Mello noted with disinterest. The boy shifted, so that, instead, he lied on his side, his back facing Mello.

The blonde was about to go to sleep himself, uncaring until he noticed something about Near's back; under the sweater carefully draped over him, a small amount of his flesh was revealed. The thing that kept Mello's attention was the sheer red of the skin.

Mello carefully stepped down from his bed and kneeled beside Near, removing the sweater slowly without disturbing the sleeping boy. Mello winced at the one long streak of red that stretched across his back. It almost looked like a whip mark but fresh.

Mello let his hand ghost over the skin, feeling the heat emanate from even an inch of distance. His hand just barely brushed Near skin when he heard a small whimper, freezing Mello with his retracting hand. He'd never heard Near whimper before.

He draped the sweater back over Near's frail form. Near sighed in his sleep, and Mello took slight pity on the boy, debating waking him up and inviting him into his bed.

Then, he shook his head. _What am I thinking?_ Humiliated by his own thoughts, Mello crawled into bed, the image of Near's burn still fresh in his mind.

~!~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian! ~


	2. The First Taste

Mello was woken from dreams of chocolate by a loud crash. He jolted upright, a natural reaction of defense from the shattered silence. His breathing quickened from sudden adrenaline rush, too.

"What was that?" he demanded. Near looked at him from around the end of the bed, charred puzzle half complete.

"I apologize. I was reaching for a stray piece when my hand knocked the dresser and your helmet fell down," Near apologized, any ounce of sincerity that could've been in his voice clouded by the neutral cover. Mello glared. _Clumsy little bastard…_

"Be careful next time. If you break something, I'll make sure you'll pay for it one way or anouther," Mello threatened. He realized his threats weren't at their normal intensity but he could still picture that burn, hidden under the thin fabric of his cotton white shirt. Near stared at him blankly before turning his gaze back toward his puzzle.

Mello looked at his clock, resisting a groan at the time. _Two hours before lessons started!_ What was he going to do for two hours? Drawing in a deep sigh, he turned to his dresser and pulled out a black jumper to wear. "Don't turn around, Near," he growled while pulling his shirt over his head.

Mello had never been body shy; often, when he snuck out or knew he was alone, he wore clothes that revealed enough skin to cause Roger a heart attack. His slim figure was one of the things he enjoyed about his body and, even when wearing a jumper, he made sure his body was accentuated. After changing, Mello ran his hand through his silky hair a couple times to remove the static. With a deep sigh, he jumped over the bed and sat in the wooden chair of his desk, pulling out a textbook.

His mind slowly drifted from his current reality to the list of words; facts, theories, and calculations filled his mind. _A circuit is a closed path so that electrons move easily from the source to the load and back to the source, repeating. Paths are generally made up of conductors. Conductors are typically made up of wires or metal strips. Conventional current flow is defined from positive to negative terminal when a circuit is…_

"Preparing for the science examination today?" Mello jumped, the blank voice closer than he realized. He could feel Near's breath on the back of his neck, sending shivers down his spine.

"Near, stop breathing down my neck," Mello growled at the white-haired teen. The boy responded by sitting on the bed, looking at the text book with half-lidded eyes, one knee to his chest, while twirling a lock of snow white hair around his fingers. Mello looked back at the text, trying to find his spot. He attempted to concentrate but the presence of Near made it difficult; the blonde's mind hazed whenever Near was close. _What's wrong with me?_

"So… Does that burn hurt?" Mello asked, opening a separate book over the science one.

"My hand? It throbs but it doesn't lower any of my capabilities," drifted the monotone voice. Mello rolled his eyes.

"Uh, no; I'm talking about the huge, painful looking one on your back." The blonde glanced at the boy, who had no change in expression but fingers had stopped twirling. _A hesitation,_ he thought until the fingers continued.

"It's not as bad as it looks. Again, my capabilities aren't going to be affected." The blonde observed him, trying to decipher some meaning in his words.

"But, you've had it checked out, right?"

No response.

"Right?" Mello could safely think that he hadn't gotten any medical attention if they didn't see the burn on his back; the only question that ravaged his mind was what Near's gain was at not requesting the assistance.

"Why don't you get it looked at?" Near's hand lowered from his hair.

"I've… never been to the doctor's before so I didn't know what to expect," the white haired boy answered, finally. Mello smirked.

"For such a big head twit, you don't know that the doctor can help you?" the blonde asked, turquoise eyes amused. Near didn't react, just glanced out the window. Mello looked at his book again before pushing his chair back, standing up.

"Take off your shirt," he ordered. Near looked up at Mello with large questioning black eyes; the blonde sighed, "I'm going to put something on it to make it heal faster, idiot."

Near's eyes went from Mello's to the floor, hands rising to the top button of his shirt. The blonde felt a heat spread over his cheeks at the site. He turned though, to hide his flush from his rival as he retrieved the lotion for Near. Mello picked up the blue bottle from his desk, taking a deep breath before turning to face Near's burn.

Mello let a wince of sympathy for the boy, who still gazed out the window, back facing Mello so he got the full gaze of the red slash; it really did look like he had taken a hit from a whip, the way it was slanted diagonally, stretching from his shoulder blade down to the corner of his hip. Mello crawled onto the bed, kneeling behind him. He let his hand ghost over the red skin just as he did last night, feeling the heat at the same intensity as it was.

"Um, what'd you do to get this?" Mello asked as he put the first slab of lotion on the skin. Near hissed as soon as the cool cream made contact with his searing flesh, a throbbing cool following; the blonde rubbed the lotion in, surprised by the whimpers that emitted from the action. _A break in Near's perfect composure,_ Mello thought with amusement.

"I fell on a flaming domino game I had set up before I slept," the panda eyed boy explained, starting to move uncomfortably.

"Stop squirming, brat; you're just going to hurt yourself," Mello commanded, placing his hands on the boy's bare waist, feeling a shudder run through the thin frame at the touch. Mello's eyes widened. _Why is this position… appealing to me?_

"If you're finished, I'm going to put my shirt back on," Near's controlled voice stated. The sudden attitude shift set off a response in Mello; _he's being affected by my touch. I'm overpowering Near._

As an experiment, he crawled around Near and stood in front of him, hands on his waist the entire time. Mello stared into the large onyx eyes, looking for an emotion in those normally blank orbs. He saw confusion; fear. He felt a smirk spread over his face.

"How are you feeling, Near?" the blonde asked seductively. _I don't feel anything but hate for you, Near,_ he told himself, _I just want to see you vulnerable, writhing._

"Mello, what are you doing?" the boy asked as the blonde pinned him down on the bed, wrists firmly in his grasp. Near was trembling under Mello, causing anouther satisfied smirk.

"Whatever I want to do, Near." _I have no idea what I'm doing._ The blonde removed one hand from Near's restrained wrists, holding them back with the other, and sensually gliding his hand across Near's exposed flesh, while watching his face for reaction. The pale boy bit his lip, shudders running through his slight frame.

"…ngh…" little sounds escaped Near's lips, though it was obvious he was attempting to restrain those noises. Mello's face was so close to the boy's beneath him, their breath's mingling. _I wonder what he'll do when I do this,_ Mello thought, tracing Near's jaw line with his tongue.

With a surprised gasp, Mello saw the normally pale boy flush furiously; Mello's own face felt feverish. The blonde moved his hands on either side of Near's waist on the bed, eyes locked with the boy's._ His lips were so close… it's so tempting…_

Near's eyes diverted from Mello's intense gaze; he was attempting to catch his breath. He seemed less rigid than when I had started putting the cream on him; Near wasn't fond with being touched. _And this little experiment is proving that fact._ _However, I don't mind invading his personal space._ He looked down at his lips, contemplating._ There's a… desire – no, a need inside me…_

Unable to control himself, Mello brushed his lips against the Near's, who had frozen. His eyes widened at the foreign invasion, breathing stopped. _He isn't making any attempts to push me away,_ Mello noted, pressing harder. Mello let his eyes close slightly, still watching Near for further reactions. _His eyes are wide with shock…_ Mello noticed… _How cute._

Suddenly, to Mello's bewilderment, Near's eyes drifted close. Mello felt dizzy before realizing he wasn't breathing. Mello's self control was slowly slipping.

"… n… ngh…" more delicious little noises escaped his rival's lips. _Screw air,_ Mello thought with conviction as he ravished the boy's mouth, running a tongue along his bottom lip. Near started to squirm uncomfortably.

"M…Mello…" he stuttered, though his words were failing. Something was drawing him away from reality; in the world he was in, it was only Near that mattered, everything else didn't. Time, place; all unimportant. It was just him and the writhing boy beneath him.

Unfortunately, reality was persistent as the ring of the bell shattered the perfect world of Mello's mind. Suddenly, his mind cleared and became rational; _I'm kissing my rival, on my bed, and class is starting in five minutes_. With that sudden rush of logic, the blonde pulled away from the shirtless teen beneath him, breathing ragged breaths.

For a moment, they just stared, learning how to take air into their lungs again. With humility, Mello stood up, back turned on Near. "Well," he breathed, reaching for his book, "I suggest we get to class."

"Yes," drifted the neutral response. Near's tone made it sound like the last few minutes never happened; his voice was controlled, composed, like it was all the time. _Why is that frustrating me?_

Mello observed the boy as he buttoned up his white shirt; the flush had started fading from his cheeks, his breathing was normal again, and, what annoyed Mello the most was the lack of emotion in those onyx eyes; the ones that were overflowing with feeling just a few moments ago. The lack of eye contact, though, suggested to Mello that Near had been affected by the blonde's previous actions. _He is human, to say the least_.

"You're going to be late for class," the boy stated as he passed out of the room. _This little experiment kinda went wayside,_ Mello concluded. _Was I actually feeling something other than hate for that little brat? _The blonde shook his head, heading out the door. _That's absurd! I'm only being controlled by hormones; I can blame puberty for doing that._

The denial that bloomed inside Mello was over the fact that he needed to do it again; he needed to see that normally unrevealing face vulnerable, to feel the hidden pale skin, to see emotion in those blank eyes. Mello sighed as he reached the door of class; _what the hell is wrong with me?_


	3. The Oblivious Friend

Author's note: alright, I was getting frustrated with all the thoughts on Mello's head and how everything seemed to be from the way he was taking it in chapter 2 so, I'm switching view points. It's Matt's view! I'm actually being spontaneous for once.

* * *

I stretched out my fingers, yawning. Man, that test was so stupid! I hate reviews. Annoy the hell outta me. At least it wasn't as hard as it could be; even being in the third position for L's successor didn't mean I was the most capable for the job. I glanced over at Mello, sitting across from me in the library. He seemed… distracted; like he was just holding the book in front of his face as a ruse.

Well, he can't fool me.

"Spss, Mello," I whispered. The blonde looked up at me, eyes cold. "Come here." Mello shook his head, looking back to the book. Dammit Mello; what do I have to do? I looked down at my notebook and smirked. Tearing off a corner, I crumpled it into a ball and flicked it at him, making a little scoring system for my game; ten points for just hitting him, twenty for hitting his face, and fifty for his eye.

Mello glared at me, making me smile. "Come here," I mouthed more forcefully. The blonde rolled his eyes and continued to ignore me. Sighing, I aimed more carefully, pretending this was one of my archery games. With the right flick, the paper landed right in Mello's turquoise left eye. He looked at me with fury, growling.

Achievement Unlocked! Pissing off the blonde!

I smirked once more until I saw the blonde seethe his way over; I imagined steam blowing out of his ears and his face red with rage. Of course, that was just my image of the teen in an absolute anger. Thankfully, I'd never had to experience his intense rage.

"What do you want, Matt?" Mello growled lowly, making sure the supervisor wouldn't hear. I smiled up at him and patted the seat beside, my eyes large and puppy-dog. He rolled his eyes but took the offer, sitting down, as I figured he would. But, his eyes were still lost in his mind, lost in thought.

"So, being thoughtful, I see; was it the test?" I started, easing into an interrogation.

"You mean the review? I'm disappointed in the teachers, actually," he responded, placing the book down open on the table. I ran a hand through my almost light brown almost red hair, watching Mello's face carefully.

"Yeah, that test was too easy; hell, if I'm saying that, you know it was easy," I joked. Mello smiled just a bit. But, I stared at him seriously. "That said, I don't think that's what's on you're mind."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he denied. I leered.

"Mello, I'm you're best friend; I can tell when you're distracted. Does this have to do with the Near situation?" I asked. Mello's eyes widened and he looked away; was that shame I saw in his eyes?

"You know, after this week is over, we could ask Roger about K having the room to himself and me and you rooming together; just so that this never happens again," I suggested softly. Mello shook his head.

"It doesn't matter; the luck of anouther fire in Near's room is so low it wouldn't be worth it," he growled. He seemed… frustrated. Man, Mello, you were so hard to read sometimes.

"Okay, I smell something wrong." Mello turned his face from me, hiding from my judging eyes. That, itself, was evidence enough to suggest something was wrong in the Mighty Mello's perfect world. You know, other than the usual 'I'm second to the fake albino!' angst.

"Mello, you can tell me anything! I've told you all of my secrets and problems in the past, why can't you return the favour?" Mello snorted.

"All of your secrets are video game cheats and all of your problems are about not being able to kill the final boss," he retorted. I laughed nervously.

"Well, that's true. But, it's also true that I told you about it, which I haven't told anyone else. I thought you trusted me?" I asked with puppy-dog eyes. I knew that bringing up the trust issue was a risky thing to do with Mello; if it were anyone but me, he would've had a spaz attack on that person. But, since we're on such a level, I figure bringing the trust issue in once could be helpful.

"Alright, I'll tell you," he sighed with defeat.

Bonus Challenge! Making him tell the truth!

"Does it have something to do with Near?" I questioned. Mello nodded. "Something to do with the whole room situation?" Mello nodded again. "He built an awesome cage of monkeys around your bed, trapping you! So, you took your master sword, sliced through the evil imprisonment, but then Near transformed into the level one hundred boss with three eyes and shot flames from-,"

"Matt, no. Snap out of it!" Mello whispered harshly. I blinked rapidly, and smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry; guess I've been playing this one game way too much. That stupid monkey boss," I chuckled nervously. My mind wandered way too much, even when I tried to pay attention; alright, so, we were talking about the room thing, right?

"Uh, I guess I should stop asking; why don't you tell me what's going on?" I suggested. Mello looked away from me again, uncertain, then, his eyes returned to mine, a flame lit.

"I hate Near; I hate him with everything that's inside me," Mello started, venom dripping with every word. "So, I have to make sure he suffers with the knowledge that I _am_ superior. I'm going to make Near grovel in what is left of his will and, when I'm finished with him, that won't be much." Mello paused for a moment, looking away from me out the window. "Something is wrong with me and it's all Near's fault. I hate him even more than before for what he's done to me and I _WILL_ make sure he pays… with the most dire of consequences."

I shuddered in fear. Poor Near… whatever he did to Mello was really bad; bad enough to evoke this kind of rage, too. I could only guess what Near had done because the look in those murderous turquoise eyes told me that asking would result in severe punishment. I picked up my pencil and started to chew on the end of it.

"Well, let's hope that the ambulance will be quick," I murmured with thought and sincerity.

What did the kid do?

~!~!~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian ~

Yeah, this is kind of a lead up chapter to the larger events; a break, if you will, until the ultimate punishment! I don't know what's going to happen but be afraid for Near.


End file.
